Power operated pipe bin



June 11, 1963 E. A. BENDER POWER OPERATED PIPE BIN Filed Feb. 25, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 June il, 1963 E. A. BENDER POWER OPERATED PIPE BIN 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 25, 1960 INVENTOR vzzZe/zeg BY M M ATTORNEYS June n, 1963 E. A. BENDER 3,093,251

POWER OPERATED PIPE BIN Filed Feb. 25, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 BSI/www ATTORNEYS Unite This invention relates to the storage, transportation and manipulation in general of elongate metal stock, particularly pipe sections used in oil well drilling operations. In the oil elds large quantities of sizeable pipe sections are handled at any given site, and it becomes important that the pipe sections be neatly and safely stored adjacent the rig so that they may Ibe rapidly and efficiently transferred to the bore hole with minimum hazard to the stock itself, particularly the threaded tool joints, and to the personnel involved. In addition to the problems at any given drill site, related problems arise in transporting the pipe sections to and from other bases of operation.

In Patent No. 2,543,274 to Emil A. Bender, these problems are discussed at length, and are dealt with by the provision of a trussed member of simple and relatively inexpensive construction which not only provides a bin and rack for temporary storage of the pipe sections with features for ready dispensing of the stock, but which may be conveniently moved about and lifted bodily onto a tinck bed for transportation. As a further feature of the device of the said patent, the bins may be provided in multiple in side-by-side relation lalongside a loading platform at the well rig with provision for rolling stock to the platform from outer bins over the tops of the inner bins after the latter have been emptied, According to the teaching of the patent specification, the movement of the pipe sections into and out of the bins is effected by external power means, such as the derrick catline usually associated with 'the well rig, or a portable crane.

It is a principal object of the present invention to widen the utility and improve the general efficiency of a portable bin and rack of the type covered in the aforesaid Bender patent by powerizing the bin units for loading and unloading the same. More particularly, it is an object to provide a portable pipeV bin with self-contained power means for filling and dispensing. In still greater particular, it is an object to provide a pipe storage bin with built-in elevator means for stock, and readily detachable power means for the elevator means.

In a brief statement of the invention, these objects are attained by providing, on the structural members of a trussed, portable bin, a series of sheaves coacting with cables from power means, such as hydraulic cylinders, and cross members depending from the cables, below the sheaves and forming the bottom support for the contents of the bin, whereby the contents may be lowered or raised to any desired degree, and with certainty, safety and dispatch.

For a more detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention, reference is made to the following specification, as illustrated in the drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view of the portable bin;

FIGURE 2 is a side elevation of the bin 4of FIGURE 1, as seen from below FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged end elevation of the bin, as seen from the right o-f FIGURE 2, with the hydraulic power supply accessories omitted;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged View of a section ltaken on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5--5 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an end elevational view of the cable- States Pater 0.

Pice

suspended cross member, as seen from the plane of the line 6--6 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken along the line 7--7 of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 8 is an axial -sectional view of one of the hydraulic cylinders, taken along the staggered line 8-8 of FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 9 is a Iblock diagram of the hydraulic system.

Referring to Ithe drawings by characters of reference, in which like numbers apply to like elements throughout, there is shown, in FIGURES l to 3, a storage bin of open-work or truss structure, having main ground support in a base unit comprising a pair of longitudinally extending I-beams 1, 2, permanently connected by lateral, spacer lmembers comprising three H-beams, 3, 4 and 5 Welded in place intermediate the extent of the bin, and two tubular members 6 and 7 welded in an arcuate recess in the ends of I-beams 1 and 2. For ease of handling in transportation, the ends of ground beams 1 and 2 are modified to provide an upturn of the lower flanges of I-beams 1 and 2 at their extremities as indicated at 8, FIGURE 2, to form skids.

Among the vertical elements of the bin, each of the base channel skids supports three main uprights or columns of I section welded to the top flanges of the skids, these main uprights being indicated, respectively by the numerals 9 to 14. Corner posts 15, 16, y17 and 18 are square tubes which may be made of pairs of angle irons welded along their lengths, Intermediate upiights of angle iron are all indicated by the same numeral, 19, and the slant trusses, also of angle iron, are all shown by the numeral 20. Diagonal members 20' in the end panels are preferably tubular. The top rail of the bin is made up, on each side, with tubular sections, 21, 22, 23 and 24, welded to and joining the main columns and the corner posts, and welded onto the tops of intermediate uprights 19.

In the saine manner as in the aforesaid patent to Bender, the main columns 9 to 14 are provided with slots 21' in their upper ends to accommodate I beams which may be laid in place for rolling pipe across the top of an idle bin to and from the rig platform walkway.

The sheaves for the cables of the elevator system of the present invention are carried on the outer pairs 9, -12 and L1, 14 of the main I-beam columns, as more clearly shown in FIGURES 4, 5 and 7. Since the sheave arrangements are identical except in the sense of being right or left hand, only one need be described, and similar numerals will apply to all. Support for the sheave 22| is provided in a tubular sleeve 23 welded in place in arcuate slots in the web of the upright 12 Iand in an auxiliary support plate 24' welded to the flanges of upright 12 in spaced relation to the web thereof. The inner, upper corner of the flange of upright 12 'is recessed as at 2S so the sheave will not extend into the path of vertical movement of the contents of the bin.

Sheave 22 carries an anti-friction bushing 26 mounted on enlarged portion 27 of a mounting shaft 28 having a head 23 and a threaded end by which it is secured through nuts 29 -to the sleeve 23. Cable 30, secured to the hydraulic system and trained over the idler sheave 22 passes down centrally of the inner anges of upright '12 and is attached at its lower end to the cross member 31 which, with a similar member at the other end of the bin, forms the vertically movable support for the contents of the bin. As seen in FIGURES 4 to 6 the movable support 31 consists of an H-beam with flanges horizontally disposed, and having welded at each end a face plate 32. Attached to one half of the face plate is -a spacer plate 33 :the purpose of which is to locate the cable anchorage in line with the sheave groove. A cable anchoring pin 34 carried by .the spacer plate 33 carries a thimble 35 receiving the loop of cable 30, the end of the latter being anchored by U bolts 36 received in plates 33 and 32. From lFIGURE 4 it will be seen that the sheave, the cable andthe latters anchorage in support beam 3.1 are so arranged that when the beam 31 is freely suspended it will be aligned for vertical movement between the inner anges of upright 12. In order that the lowermost layer of pipe in the bin (the pipe lying directly on supports 31), may be removed by simple rolling, it is desirable that the top flange of support 31 rise to a level at least as high as the top of upright 12. In order to accomplish this it is necessary that the support beam 31 clear the sheave, and it is for this reason that the upright is provided with the recess at 25 mentioned above. Movement of beam 31 past lthe desired maximum level is prevented by a corner lug 32 on the face plate 32, which provides a stop by contact with the sheave.

As seen in FIGURES 1 and 2, the cable system is anchored on and actuated by the plungers of a pair of hydraulic cylinders 37, 38 detachably mounted atop the corner posts at the right end of the bin and aligned with the respective siderails. Each cylinder unit has a rearwardly extending, peripherally grooved, semicircular plate 39 fixed to the outer face of the hydraulic plunger or piston, over which the cables 30 are looped, in anchored relation as by straps 40. From this plate the upper portions of the cables lead to the sheaves 22 on the nearmost pair of main columns 11 and 14, and the lower portions lead to the remote sheaves on the pair of columns 9 and 12. The two cross bar supports or rails 31 are freely suspended from the cable ends below the respective pairs of sheaves.

FIGURE 8 presents a more detailed showing of the hydraulic cylinders, their mounting and the cable attachment. The cylinder housing 41 has a bottom 42 with a uid opening 42', and attached to the open end of the housing is a packing housing 43 threadedly receiving a packing nut 44 which compresses the packing 45 through a bushing 46. The packing housing 43 also has an integral, inwardly extending annulus 47, which also serves to form a stop, limiting outward movement of the plunger or piston 48. The latter, which is of tubular form, closed at its ends by an outer plate 49 and an inner plate 50, has secured at its inner end a surrounding sleeve f1 which cooperates with the annulus 47 of the packing housing -to provide the stop means limiting travel of the plunger. An exterior sleeve or inlay 52 on the stop sleeve 51 and an inner sleeve 53 on the packing nut 44, both preferably of aluminum bronze, form the anti-friction means for the plunger-cylinder assembly. Attached, as by welding, to the outer face of plunger 48, is the semicircular anchor plate 39, which may conveniently be cut from a commercially available sheave.

The mounting for the hydraulic cylinder unit is provided in a tubular yoke 54 of rectangular section, snugly receiving the outer housing 41 of the hydraulic cylinder up t0 the inner end of packing housing 43, which forms a stop means. Yoke 54 is welded on the top of the square tube 18 forming a corner post of the bin. As best seen in `FIGURE 3, the corner post is foreshortened in height so that the top of the yoke does not extend above the loading and unloading level defined by the height of columns 9 to 14. Compensation for the foreshortening of the post is provided in a reinforcing corner web 57. It should also be noted that the inner face of the yoke does not extend within the line of the inner extremities of the flanges of main columns 9 to 14, so that the bin may be utilized throughout its length.

With the cylinder mounted in yoke 54, the unfilled corners of the yoke provide guides for the cable, diagonally opposite corners being selected so that the cable will clear the framework of the bin, and the grooved anchor plate 39 accordingly assumes an orientation along the diagonal line. There is no obstruction between the upper cable section and the near sheave on column 14 and the lower cable section, which leads to the remote sheave, is so located as to clear the central column 13.

The power system for the cylinders, details of which are conventional, is shown in schematic layout in FIG- URE 9, showing the liow diagram. Oil from the reser voir is circulated by the pump, and feed to the cylinders is governed primarily by the control valve. The feed to the respective cylinders is further controlled by a sensing equalizer including a shunted `system of two needle choke valves 61. The equalizer is extremely important in guaranteeing a level condition of the stock being manipulated in the bin, in view of the varying load conditions which may be expected and may also be employed to deliberately tilt the cross members 31 to assist in rolling the pipe either into or out of the bin. Upon release of the hydraulic pressure the plunger is retracted by the weight of the load on the cables.

The uses of the bin system will be readily apparent. Loading, whether at the well site or lat any point of supply is accomplished by actuating the hydraulic system to raise the two support beams 31 until their upper flanges are level with the tops of the main columns 9 to 14, or slightly below this level. The pipe sections are then rolled onto the beams 31 until the bottom layer is complete. If the loading is taking place at the well site the loading will be conveniently effected from the usual walkway, the latter being tailored to the height of the bin, or vice versa. For loading at remote points, a platform may be improvised, or the bin may be loaded by a crane or the like.

With the bottom layer in place, cross rails of metal or wood may be laid in place across the pipe as spacers to provide a rolling surface for the second layer of pipe, and to prevent direct contact of the layers, and the hydraulic mechanism actuated to bring the top surface of the cross rails level with the bin columns. The second layer of pipe is then rolled into place on the rails, and the process of laying rails and lowering repeated until the bin is loaded or .the available supply of pipe has been stored.

Assuming that two or more bins are spotted at the site, when the loading of one bin has proceeded to a level just short of the bottom of top slots 21 in the main columns, the auxiliary I-beams are laid in place across the bin, with ends anchored in the slots, and pipe intended for the' next bin is rolled across these top beams which serve as rails.

For unloading the process is reversed. Dispensing from a bin is effected by actuating the hydraulic cylinder in a sense to eject the plunger. The resultant pull of the cables on support beams 31 raises the entire contents of the bin until the uppermost layer of pipe is positioned for rolling across the tops of the bin columns. With the uppermost row of pipe removed, the loose cross rails are removed and the contents again raised to bring the next layer of pipe into position for removal. Assuming the lirst bin emptied the I-beams are placed in top slots 21 to render the empty bin a rolling platform for dispensing from the second or succeeding bins.

A single hydraulic system including the pair of cylinders will sutiice for servicing a plurality of bins, in which case it will be provided with quick removal features, such as a self-sealing, quickly detachable coupling in the iluid line leading to the cylinder inlet 42'. The cylinder units may be removed by simple withdrawal from their mounting yokes, in which case provision will be made for ready detachment of straps 40 securing the cable. Alternatively the grooved plate 39 may be arranged for removal from the plunger 48.

-From the foregoing it will be seen that there has been provided a system in which the large amounts of carefully fabricated, heavy, bulky and expensive sections of pipe necessary in oil drilling operations are handled in a safe, expeditious and economical manner, and that the attendant benefits not only extend to problems of storage and l1andling at a drill site but apply also to all operations incidental to transportation. IFor instance, if pipe is to be transported, whether to or from a -well site, it can be handled in bin loads as units, as by skidding the bin along the ground or a truck bed, and by lifting the unit by hosts engaging loops 62 secured to the bottom rails of the framework. With such bulk handling, the individual pipe sections are not subject to any undue abuse, and the hazards to personnel are materially reduced.

While a certain preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, it should not be deemed as limited thereby since various modifications and reasonable equivalents will be apparent to those skilled in the pertinent arts, and therefore the invention should not be considered as limited except as shall appear from the spirit and scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

A storage device comprising a bin with vertical, structural, side and end elements defining a top opening, a pair of sheaves mounted on each side of the bin and lying closely -below the top of said side element, said sheaves being axially aligned on opposite sides of -the bin at positions substantially removed 'from the central region of the bin, means on each of the sides of said bin at one end thereof mounting a powered cylinder with a plunger aligned with 4the sides of said bin, hydraulic means powering said cylinder, a pair of cable segments attached one to each of said plungers and trained over the pair of sheaves on its respective side of the bin, an equalizer in said hydraulic means for maintaining -said cable segments. in alignmeint during movement thereof, guide means for said cable segments associated with each of said mounting means, said guide means being located, respectively, above l and below the axis of said cylinder and on opposite sides of a vertical plane through the axis of said cylinder, and

a pair of cross rails each freely suspended at its ends from the adjacent ends of the pair of cable segments depending from the axially aligned sheave pairs, said rails having a length permitting their movement vertically within the framework of said bin from a point closely adjacent the oor of the bin to a point close to the margin of the top opening.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 29,390 Lewis July 31, 1860 1,789,025 Shepard Jan. 13, 1931 2,107,210 Palm `Feb. 1, 1938 2,532,342 Sloane Dec. 5, 1950 2,543,274 Bender Feb. 27, 195,1 2,632,627 Schultz Mar. 24, 1953 2,695,209 De Witt Nov. 23, 1954 2,891,636 Krieger June 23, 1959 2,919,822 Darnell Ian. 5, 1960 

